South Sudan: MSF warns of devastating floods in coming months

24 July 2024 (Juba) – Devastating floods could hit South Sudan over the next three months, exacerbating food insecurity and limiting people’s access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation, a medical charity has warned.

In a statement on Wednesday, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said that up to 5.4 million people are expected to live in areas affected by flooding in South Sudan. The group also predicted that rainfall is likely to increase between July and October.

These factors may have caused flooding unprecedented in the last century.

This year’s forecast is particularly worrying for those living in overcrowded IDP camps or transit centres.

“The increase in rainfall projected for 2024 is very worrying, given the number of people at risk in flood-prone areas; the threat to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH); and the risk of water-borne and vector-borne diseases,” said Joe Aumuller, MSF epidemiologist campaign manager.

MSF said the expected severe flooding could force people to flee their homes, reduce the supply of crops and livestock needed for proper nutrition, disrupt the delivery of aid and increase the likelihood of disease outbreaks.

Special mention was made of hepatitis E, which is endemic in some parts of South Sudan.

MSF is concerned about the health, nutrition, water and sanitation needs of 740,000 refugees and returnees from Sudan, who will join nearly 2 million internally displaced people in South Sudan.

The statement also noted a possible increase in the number of malaria cases among children.

Doctors Without Borders said there was a surge in diarrhoea cases among children under five in Bentiu’s internally displaced persons camp during the 2021 and 2022 floods.

“This year’s forecast is particularly worrying for those living in overcrowded IDP camps or transit centres,” Omueller stressed.

There are concerns that nutritional problems could lead to malnutrition, weakening children’s immune systems and harming their long-term health and development.

MSF calls on leaders and other humanitarian organizations to take immediate action to help protect people from the devastating impacts of flooding and ensure that South Sudan’s water, health and education systems are more resilient to climate change and can adapt to more intense and frequent extreme weather events.

(English stone)